


nature, nurture, heaven and home

by tookumade



Series: SportsFest - 2018 [1]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Gen, Graduation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-23
Updated: 2018-06-23
Packaged: 2019-05-27 08:48:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 652
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15020978
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tookumade/pseuds/tookumade
Summary: “Thought we’d find you here.”Kita doesn’t turn around at the sound of Aran’s voice, at the sound of his, Oomimi’s, and Akagi’s footsteps. He smiles, rubbing at his eyes with a sniff.“You knew I’d be here,” he says, unsurprised.





	nature, nurture, heaven and home

**Author's Note:**

> SportsFest 2018 Bonus Round 1 prompt:  
>   
>  **Ship/Character:** Kita Shinsuke (and any other hq characters if you wish)  
>  **Additional Tags:** tea  
>  **TIME:** Post-Graduation  
>  **PLACE:** A deserted shrine

This is but another step of Kita’s journey—wherever he’s going, whatever he’s doing. This will all be just a long memory in a few years’ time, it’ll shape him into whoever he’ll be then, and he knows he’ll be grateful for the lessons learnt in the three years he’s spent at this school, it’s all a part of life, the world will keep turning, things will keep changing, he’ll keep moving, it’s all… it’s all…  
  
“Thought we’d find you here.”  
  
Kita doesn’t turn around at the sound of Aran’s voice, at the sound of his, Oomimi’s, and Akagi’s footsteps. He smiles, rubbing at his eyes with a sniff.  
  
“You knew I’d be here,” he says, unsurprised. They sit beside him on the steps of the old, peaceful, abandoned shrine: Aran by his right, Akagi at his left, Oomimi sitting a few steps below and stretching his long legs comfortably. Everyone’s bags are by their side, with their graduation scrolls tucked into them and sticking out of their respective zips. It’s breezy, and pink cherry blossom petals cover the ground like a patchy carpet. The handful of old fox statues scattered around the place are worn from the elements; Aran likes to pretend that when they’re left alone, away from human eyes, the foxes come alive.  
  
“Wasn’t hard to guess,” says Akagi. “I don’t think anyone comes here but you.”  
  
“Us,” says Kita.  
  
“Us,” Akagi echoes agreeably.  
  
Wordlessly, Aran offers Kita a pocket packet of tissues, but Kita shakes his head and holds up his own. Aran smirks; a little ‘ _ah, of course_ ’.  
  
There is the sound of a thermos being uncapped, and Kita peers down to see Oomimi pouring tea into some paper cups.  
  
“When did you have time to make that?” Akagi demands.  
  
“This morning,” Oomimi answers. “It’s a good thermos; tea’s still hot.”  
  
“Like old times, huh?” says Aran, accepting a cup with thanks. “But without Atsumu to tell you two that you look like a married couple.”  
  
“Ha! Well, I figured at least one of us was going to cry, and I find that tea always makes people feel better. Akagi, here.”  
  
“Somehow, it feels like you specifically knew that _I_ would cry, Ren,” Kita points out mildly, and there’s the faintest of twitches at the corners of Oomimi’s lips.  
  
“Drink up, Shinsuke.”  
  
They all sit in an amicable silence for a while, taking tiny sips of—if Kita isn’t mistaken—a green tea from Oomimi’s grandmother’s hometown. It’s delicious, warm in his chest, and Kita finds his eyes are dry, now.  
  
The last time he had cried was—  
  
“You know, Coach Kurosu offered me the captain’s shirt to keep,” says Kita quietly. “He said the staff could just get another one made up.”  
  
“You turned that down?” Aran asks, like he already knows the answer.  
  
“Mm. It didn’t feel right to keep it.”  
  
“That’s just like you,” says Oomimi with a little smile.  
  
“But… I was tempted,” Kita adds. He runs his thumbs along the side of his cup absently. A cherry blossom petal only just misses falling in. “It was… it was my first uniform.”  
  
He can almost feel his friends exchange looks. Aran claps his back fondly. “If he could ask you to stay another year, he probably would, you know. He’ll have to deal with the twins without you next year.” Akagi gives a bark of laughter.  
  
“You could probably come back every now and then when you don’t have classes at uni,” Oomimi points out, and Kita’s hands still and looks up now, a little surprised. Aran’s grinning at him; Oomimi refills Akagi’s cup; Akagi brushes some cherry blossom petals from his arm.  
  
“I could,” says Kita slowly. A smile tugs at his mouth, and he raises his cup to his lips again. “I might.”  
  
Another step in his journey—the world will keep turning, things will keep changing, and he’ll keep moving.

**Author's Note:**

> Title comes from _The Humbling River_ by Puscifer


End file.
